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Wanda Said:

Do I lease/rent out a house in another state not selling?

We Answered:

I completely agree with godged.

In addition to a Property Manager, I would use a rock solid lease agreement that covers you for everything and consider making friends with a real estate attorney. Be sure your lease includes things like yard upkeep, access to the premises for showing, how clean the house must be kept for showing, pets, smoking, late fees, move-out notice, tenants allowed, guests allowed (term), utilities included, and any other specific upkeep (like pool, fountain, etc).

For the tax implications, speak with a CPA. You'll eventually be able to claim depreciation and potentially some other monies.

You should also consider asking some neighbors to keep an eye on things for you as well. Ask them to let you know if the yard is looking terrible or if they are smoking pot in the garage.

Patsy Said:

How can a $120K house cost $1200/mo w/ a 6.7% rate at 30 y-fixed mortgage?

We Answered:

You should read the Truth in Lending Disclosure, which gives you the true Annual Percentage Rate (interest and all fees), the total of payments, the total of all interest etc. Personally and without a Truth in Lending calculator, I think their figures are in the ballpark, because of the 30 years of interest due. As a rough guideline, the interest on a 30-year loan will be about double the total principal, so if they borrowed $120,000, the total due over 30 years will be $360,000. That comes to roughly $1000 per month. Then you have to add the escrow for insurance and real estate taxes, so $1200 per month seems reasonable. Don't forget, they will get a sizeable tax deduction for their interest payments.

Toni Said:

How can you quickly evict a non-paying tenant?

We Answered:

I hear ya. I feel like we the landlord get screwed. I've got tennants that haven't paid since the deposit and it's such a long process to get them out. It's almost as if they know this and live place to place for 3 months knowing they can get away with it. I haven't figured it out yet. I know that when I lived in Atlanta, GA if you didn't have your rent you were out within 5 days. I can't find a legal way to do that.

Nina Said:

Keep money or pay off house?

We Answered:

pay the house off. at 5.25% interest for the house, compared to a max of 5% on a cd with the money you would still lose money. Pay off the mortgages, and invest the rest of the money. Smartest move you could ever make.

Martin Said:

Is there a site where I can plug in different tax deductions to see what I'd have to pay or get back?

We Answered:

I've used the one at Dinkytown http://www.dinkytown.net/java/Tax1040.ht… to run numbers. The problem with any of the free calculators is that they don't do state taxes. As an alternative, you could use any of the online tax prep sites and prepare a 2009 return. That will work just as well since you don't need a precise number. Plus you already have a 2009 return done, right? You will only have to change the deductions to see what happens.

Don't forget that if your state allows mortgage interest and real estate taxes as a deduction, you will have to pay less to the state, which will lower your federal deductions.

I hope this helps.
Gary

Ken Said:

VHDA Loan = Legit???

We Answered:

Read the fine print..

Lucille Said:

Corporate Home Ownership?

We Answered:

Don't be ridiculous.

Go ahead and buy a house and even claim a home office deduction for the room you use for your home business, but don't even think of trying to shelter a dwelling you live in under some jive corporation that you started. Can you say "audit" for the rest of your natural life?